Friday, 29 November 2013

Never making it to my bookshelf, christmas or birthday wishlist, despite being picked up in bookshops many times over the years, when an email came in asking me if I wanted to review a copy of the New illustrated edition of ‘Dear Friend and Gardener’ introduced by Fergus Garrett… I was thrilled and smiling all day!!Sorry, I just couldn’t make this book a giveaway to readers as was also suggested.

‘It is this book, I suspect, that many gardeners would most like to find at the ends of their beds when they wake up on Christmas morning.’

Independent on Sunday

I wholeheartedly agree with the quote above that appears on the back cover of this book. What an absolute joy this book has been to pick up and read over short and long spells since I received it back in early September. Would I recommend it? I think you might guess the answer there… YES!

So what makes this book special for me - I was to discover a few things I didn’t expect. The first thing I found was a renewed love of hand letter writing after years of ‘letter writing’ via PC template newsletters and word docs with inserted photos. Through reading just a few chapters, I genuinely took out a pen and writing pad from my drawer and began a letter to my friend. How surprisingly liberating it was!

The novel approach of letter writing between (distinguished UK/British gardeners and long established friends) Beth Chatto and Christopher Lloyd was made by their good friend Giles Gordon. The letter exchanges for this book covered two years (1996 & 1997) which include everything two gardening friends may chat about from the weather (often) to cooking freshly grown produce, from plants and garden visits to lunches and gossip. Oh yes... and there was a tad gardenwatching at times too ;-)

“This morning, I had to be up early to say goodbye to Anne Wambach (whom we met up with in Vancouver, some years ago). We visited the Colocasia esculenta and there was a toad sitting motionless underneath a leaf tip, enjoying the overhead drip shower! Such experiences are precious. We walked away on tiptoe.”

“Incidentally I loved your picture of the toad sitting under the drip from the leaf-tip of an aroid – something magical that happens perhaps once in a lifetime, like the evening Andrew and I stood on one of the nursery paths, and a baby hedgehog came purposefully towards us and, finding my feet in the way, stumbled unconsciously over them. Like you and Anne Wambach we held our breath.”

Skilled plants people and garden writers who travelled the world, Beth and Christopher, were caretakers for two quite different gardens in England. Ordinary gardeners (what are they?) have to contend with what our unpredictable weather throws at us – Beth and Christopher were no different.

Beth in particular, gardens with a low level of rainfall which was a challenge that she turned into an experiment with her gravel garden. I remember watching a television programme on this not long after it was finished and was very keen to see it for myself which I did a couple of years later on a bus trip to the Chelsea Flower Show. I wasn't disappointed.

Reading through the high quality pages of my hardback copy of Dear Friend and Gardener (I adore nice paper too) brought great personal insights in to the daily lives of the two celebrated friends.

I genuinely loved this extended chat which included a collection of colour garden photos. Ha-ha… that shouldn’t be a surprise to my garden blog readers at all ;-)

The picture of the two friends, on the back cover of this book, makes me smile once again as I recognise the background as the topical garden at Christopher’s garden at Great Dixter. If I have done my sums correctly, Beth was 74 years young when they began these letters and Christopher (known as Christo to his friends) would have been 76 years. They were both actively involved in the running of their gardens then too. Christopher died in 2006 aged 88.

They were indeed a very busy pair at the time of letter writing. Chat on social engagements as well as professional ones are discussed between the two. I found it both fun and fascinating to hear about this. However, I particularly loved that still there was time for supporting smaller, local engagements…

“I’m giving an illustrated talk in the village this evening, showing different aspects and areas of Dixter through the year, and there are some lovely crocus pictures – those by the front path taken on 28 February this year. “

One of the delights in reviewing this book came near the end of reading it... with the discovery that my visit to Beth’s Garden had been during the time the two friends were exchanging their letters! It didn’t occur to me that this could be until I looked out the photos below to scan for this blog. What a fantastic coincidence :-)

Beth Chatto's Gravel Garden, taken on my visit of Thursday 23rd May 1996.

Beth Chatto's Water Gardens, taken on my visit of Thursday 23rd May 1996.

Are you guessing what I checked next? Yep… the dates of the letters… did they match my visit? Close enough, I’d say! What a thrill. You can see the actual plants Beth refers to in the quote below above in my photos taken just a few days before – I got out a magnifying glass and went image searching online to verify this. What a fun, first book review this was becoming.

“The ancient oaks which form such an important role all round my garden are only now spreading tiny transparent yellow leaves, picking up the incredible colour of the euphorbias throughout the garden. E.robbiae in the shade, E. pallustris by the waterside. E.wulfenii and E.polychroma dominating the Gravel Garden. Against tantalising skies, heavy with French grey-navy blue clouds, these plants positively give off light. I can see them from my north-facing kitchen window as I prepare our evening meal and am enthralled by them. They lead my eyes into the distant scene, blossoming trees, layers of new leaves, a dark pool of water rimmed with big yellow kingcups.”

A Great Dixter visit on a family holiday in 2000, when my daughters were young, meant that I could picture garden/house areas Beth and Christopher were chatting about. We took the tour of the house but unfortunately other visitors spoilt it a bit by making us feel uncomfortable for joining the guided tour with young children - well behaved, interested 7 & 9 year olds they were too I should add.

It was still nice to see inside the house at Great Dixter and I could easily imagine Christopher living and entertaining there, even before reading the letters. It was a scorching day on our visit which curtailed our garden wandering a little. However, an area that was roped off caught our attention. Someone was doing an interview with Christopher that day which added to our visit. We never saw Christopher – just the empty chair. I remember seeing lots of bold tall yellow blooms in the garden that day too.

Aware that some of my blog visitors might be from outside the UK (and for those living here) who might not get the chance to visit Great Dixter, I went searching for a video to show you the house. I found one I liked that has Fergus Garrett narrating it which was a bonus as he is mentioned throughout this book. A bit about Fergus first…

FERGUS GARRETT has been Head Gardener of Great Dixter since 1992 and worked closely with Christopher Lloyd during the garden’s most exciting developments. After Christopher’s death in 2006, Fergus became Chief Executive of the Great Dixter Charitable Trust, and he continues to manage and lecture on Great Dixter and gardening. Fergus first worked at the Beth Chatto Gardens as a student more than 20 years ago and has remained a close friend of Beth’s ever since. In this edition Fergus writes a new introduction.

“Here I am in front of a good fire, in the solar, just as it was six months ago. It took me ages to get installed (feet up on the sofa, both dogs by my right leg). First I realized that Canna wasn’t with me; she is so absent minded. I went back for her; she was still in the bathroom. Then having returned, I found I had left my specs in the bathroom. Back again. This time I counted my paces; it was 73 yards (over 66m) each way. So the double journey, what with picking up my laptop from the parlour, was a good 300 yards (over 270m).”

What fun, you can easily put Christopher Lloyd in the house above now and you get a flavour of the chat between the two… if you haven’t gone for a nap yourself! Please forgive my indulgent long review (regular blog visitors will be used to my odd lengthy blog posts – I do have a warning in my sidebar too). I have genuinely had fun with this and hope it’s been an entertaining read for you too.

Make no mistake, this book will keep you up reading it with some serious plant chat too, many plant plant names, growing conditions and varieties best suited to certain conditions – all useful stuff for the new and experienced gardener can be found in this book in a style that you might find by meeting gardening friends over a coffee. Even these gardening friends were still learning :-)

The Exotic Garden at Great Dixter, taken on my visit of 20th July 2000.

Despite gardenwatching and blogging for seven years now, what keeps me going is continuing to learn too. Sharing ‘stuff’ that I have come across is so much part of that. It is with this in mind I have one more quote from Dear Friend and Gardener that I’d like to share (it’s been hard cutting my list back).

Only recently I had spotted a Woodpigeon gathering on my small pendulous cotoneaster tree (so out of scale they were). They started eating its berries. In all my gardenwatching, I had never seen that before. I really shouldn’t have been surprised…

“There are crowds of ivy seedlings – the wild Hedera helix which one needs to be at before they start running and rooting as they go. I have a week spot for ivy as I would expect you to. Its foliage is so glossy and rich on mature specimens, of which I allow a number, mostly on ash trees, which have a light, thin crown of foliage; just what ivy suits best. Flowering time in the autumn, is a festive occasion for many insects; a loud hum issues from a flowering ivy. And then there is the fruit (source of our weeding troubles), which is borne in handsome, domed clusters and adored when ripening in February, by wood pigeons. These are daintily built birds and it is laughable to hear them clapping their wings as they attempt to balance on a quite unsuitably weak twig, to reach the berries.”

Interestingly here, I did lift running wild ivy (growing under my Leylandii hedge) and planted it up my pergola poles after losing plants to a hard winter a number of years ago. It was an experiment that worked well and I have ivy flowers on the roof of my pergola now as well as birds feeding on insects on its leaves. I will be keeping a closer eye up there in February now – thanks Christopher :-)

Okay, that’s the chat from me almost over now and shortly I’ll hand you over to Beth and Christopher chatting in videos. Before I go, I’d like to share one final delight that I discovered on reading Dear Friend and Gardener and it was to be found in the final letter from Beth to Christo.

Garden videos, I have received quite a few over Christmases past, made the big ironings when my daughters were younger a very pleasant activity and something to look forward to. I had one favourite garden video that I watched again and again and if ever I hear the music used in the intro I am instantly transported back in time and can hear Beth Chatto’s voice talking to me. You'll find a clip from it below :-)

You can imagine what a thrill it was when I realised that this favourite video I had enjoyed so much was being filmed during the time of letter writing for Dear Friend and Gardener. Beth’s final letter to Christo describes the excitement of a publicity party for a video. Once I read who made the video I gave the biggest smile… Wow!

Wishing everyone a great weekend (especially Beth for a peaceful Sunday where she will have her garden all to herself). I think I'll get that current letter to my friend finished now that I am done here. I genuinely can’t see any gardener (especially garden bloggers) not enjoying this book. It is a delight to read. You'll find the code for a discount price at the bottom of this post ;-)

The Beth Chatto Gardens video, 2 min 20 sec clip, try HD quality.

“ BETH CHATTO is a well-respected plantswoman, garden designer and writer. She describes the experiences of creating the Beth Chatto Gardens from scratch at Elmstead Market in Essex in The Dry Garden (1978), The Damp Garden (1982) and Beth Chatto’s Shade Garden (2008). Today’s wonderful and mature planting is beautifully captured by photographer Rachel Warne in A Year in the Life of Beth Chatto’s Gardens. Beth’s knowledge of gardening on inauspicious sites is virtually unequalled. She holds the Royal Horticultural Society’s Victoria Medal of Honour and an honorary doctorate from Essex University for her services to horticulture. She was awarded an OBE in 2002.”

“ CHRISTOPHER LLOYD (1921–2006) is one of the major figures in 20th-century gardening who transformed the gardens of his home Great Dixter in East Sussex. He authored a host of classics, including The Well-Tempered Garden (1970), The Adventurous Gardener (1987), Gardener Cook (1997), Christopher Lloyd’s Gardening Year (1999), and Exotic Planting for Adventurous Gardeners (2007). On his death in 2006, Christopher Lloyd was described as ‘the best informed, liveliest and most innovative gardening writer of our times’. He was awarded an OBE in 2000.”

To order a copy of Dear Friend and Gardener for £16 including p&p* (RRP £20), telephone 01903 828503 or email mailorders@lbsltd.co.uk, and quote the offer code APG16. *UK only - Please add £2.50 if ordering from overseas.

Tuesday, 19 November 2013

After seven years of gardenwatching and blogging, 2014 promises to be an interesting year of discovery for garden and blog visitors. I'm hoping for frogs, toads and dragonflies! Yay… my pond liner finally made its way from under the sofa indoors to outside in its permanent new home. Let the gardenwatching take a new phase for year 8 ;-)

I’ll keep the full pond reveal until its complete, unfortunately frost is hampering the last finishing touches – you got a sneak preview on wordless Wednesday last week ;-)

Congratulations and a huge thank-you to all blog visitors who have read, followed and commented on shirls gardenwatch for another year. My blog just wouldn’t be the same without you all. My first post in November 2006 seems a long way away now. Here’s to another year!

Friday, 15 November 2013

Despite the many miles between our gardens, mine in Perthshire Scotland and Carol’s in Indiana USA, today we both have flower buds on a Christmas rose! What fun it is to compare our gardens to other gardens around the world on the 15th of the month and Carol at May Dreams Gardens is the blogger and hostess behind it all.

The reality is, had I not read Carol’s November 2013 blog post for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day and seen her photo I wouldn’t have realised my Christmas rose even had a bud. Out in my garden I was to I move fallen leaves to discover a flower bud hiding below. I didn’t think I had anything to contribute this month however my camera kept finding more that I wanted to capture before possible snowfall at the end of next week. Oh dear… there is much to finish outside before then!

I’ll rush you through my small garden so you have time to browse all the many blooming gardens around the world. I wonder if other gardens will have the same blooms. Have fun… HAPPY GARDEN BLOGGERS’ BLOOM DAY everyone :-)

Astrantia – either ‘Ruby Wedding’ or ‘Gill Richardson’. I must find out which one.

Wishing you all a great weekend. Last weekend's garden to-do of building a wildlife home is still on my list! Other stuff happened. Nice stuff, first car shopping with daughter! Lots of garden stuff to do before the snows - a busy week ahead. What garden to-do's are on your list before our gardens get caught in Winter's grip?

Saturday, 9 November 2013

The list can be long for weekend garden jobs just now as we race between reasonable spells of weather and daylight. What jobs have you planned for this weekend? Have you cleaned out old nests from your nestboxes – perhaps you have seen birds looking in your garden nestboxes recently and wondered why?

The drop in temps at this time of year brings the birds to the feeders, that is easy for us to see, but it also brings birds to garden nestboxes too as they look for a warm place to roost in over the cold winter months ahead. I might take a guess that more nestboxes will be occupied over the winter than in spring/summer months. I love to see roosters tucked up in our nestbox at night especially when I'm cosy inside.

Our camera nestbox has had Blue tit roosters every winter since it went up in March 2007 and we’ve seen summer roosters too. I’ve often wondered if the summer roosters have been males keeping other perspective pairs from nesting in our nestbox so it will have more insects for his family in another nestbox nearby.

Our camera nestbox came with three sizes of entrance panels. The smallest (25mm) hole was to suit Blue tits (shown on right above), Coal tits and Marsh tits and was the one we fitted as we guessed Blue tits were most likely to use it. We were thrilled to see successful nesting by a pair of Blue tits in 2010 after seeing two unsuccessful broods in 2007 and 2008.

However, since then we’ve only had roosters which has been disappointing when there’s a camera in our nestbox. After cleaning out the winter rooster's droppings ready for Spring 2013 we made the decision to change the nestbox entrance panel to the medium (28mm) hole which was suitable for Great tits (shown on the left above), Tree Sparrows and Pied Flycatchers (so the manufacturer says).

Alas, no joy for nesting in 2013 but, as you know already from this post title, we now have a Great Tit roosting in our camera nestbox! I’ve not found myself at my usual gardenwatching window as much this year but was delighted to be there back on the 11th of October when I spotted a bird fly to towards the nestbox just after 10am. I switched on the camera to look inside and got a surprise to see a Great tit looking around!

Not knowing if the Great tit would hang around when I suspected a Blue tit might be roosting there, I took my video camera to another window to see what was going on outside the nestbox. The Great tit returned to look inside a few times. It came in to inspect our nestbox too which I watched back at my PC monitor. Since then it has roosted every night :-)

I'm pretty sure the Blue tit found another nestbox to roost in. I’m looking forward to nesting time now and curious to know if a Great tit rooster will actually nest in the same nestbox come Spring. However, I already know this Great tit rooster will be getting watched.

Spot the blue/green flash on the left hand picture below. The Blue tit hung around outside the nestbox when the Great tit was inside. I suspect the Great tit inside could hear it too.

What fun it is to watch new gardenwatching action again. Our frosty mornings earlier this week brought a few Fieldfares to the berries at my neighbour’s Rowan tree. I had apples out already and hope they will return to my garden over the winter to find them. I wonder if there will be any surprise visitors this winter. I enjoyed seeing the Pied Wagtail last year and the Yellowhammers :-)

One of my garden weekend jobs is to build a home for wildlife in a stone wall I rebuilt – I took the opportunity for a bit of redesign. My build won’t be as tidy as the one in the photo below taken on my Harrogate Autumn Flower Show visit back in September but nor will it be like the really messy ones with hay spilling out. I’ll try to make it just right for my setting and space.

Wishing you a great weekend of successful garden jobs and fun gardenwatching :-)

Yum.. our sandwiches were tasty! Is that the engine of a small boat we hear?

I'll walk off my lunch and head down to the jetty to meet everyone.

Back to the holiday cottage... let's take in the evening view... is that supper on the grass?

A beach trip for a tasty bites served on seaweed. No queuing required in this quiet spot ;-)

Isle of Skye alfresco dining again... some 'moorish' bites before we head home?

Ha-ha… these Hooded Crow images just begged to tell a story – didn’t they? They amused me while the others were on the boat trip. It was fun discovering a new bird on holiday back in September. We first spotted it on moorland by the side of a single track road in the Waternish area of Skye, a few miles from our holiday cottage. I thought them quite eye catching and was eager to find out what they were.

Of course, crows being smart, they were the ones who were watching me when I put out a ground tray of bird food to the side of the front lawn at our holiday cottage! In recent years, I have packed a small bag of bird food when we’ve gone on UK cottage holidays as an experiment to see if birds would find it. It hasn’t exactly been successful but I am ever the optimist and always put out peanuts in the hope of red squirrels – no luck there yet :-(

To tempt birds to my small ground feeder on Skye, I tried throwing bread bits en route to the feeder with the theory that it would be more visible from above - especially with the contrast of colour on the grass. Of course, as you might expect, the hooded crows watched from their vantage spot on the powerlines and didn’t come down when I was gardenwatching from my holiday cottage window. So... no photos there.

Birds spotted around our holiday cottage included Goldfinches (first birds spotted/heard when we arrived), Chaffinches, House Sparrows, Dunnocks (shown on table above), Blackbird, Thrush, Robin, Great tit & Robin. Rabbits were seen under the picnic table, on the grass, paths, driveway and the single track road outside cottage late in the evening and early in the morning. No deer were heard in the hill/moor behind cottage – phew!

Coming back to the main stars of this blog post… the Hooded Crows… here’s some info I found on them...

The Hooded Crow Corvus cornix:

”Once thought to be the same species, the Hooded Crow replaces the Carrion Crow in north Scotland, the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland. In areas where the two species overlap, hybridisation can occur with individuals showing mixed plumage. Like Carrion Crows, Hooded Crows feed on carrion, invertebrates and grain, as well as stealing eggs from other birds' nests. They are more sociable than Carrion Crows, and may be seen feeding in groups. Breeding populations are joined by winter visitors from Scandinavia.”

”Hooded crows have a folkloric reputation as harbingers of danger. They are very closely related to the carrion crow and the two species sometimes interbreed. Hooded crows are opportunists, eating whatever is available - berries, shellfish, eggs, insects and carrion. They are very smart and have been seen to drop shells from a great height to smash them open, and to pull in fishing lines to steal the catch or the bait.”

“The hooded crow, or 'hoodie' is now recognised as a different species to the carrion crow (Corvus corone). Both are around the same shape and size as a rook (Corvus frugilegus), but the hooded crow is easily identified by its two-colour plumage; the body is a dirty grey, while the wings, tail, head and bib are black. The calls are harsh and croaky, and include a 'kra-kra-kra', which may have given rise to the imitative name 'crow'.”

It’s been fun sharing Skye and the Hooded Crow with you all - there’s more to come on Skye another time too. Alas, this holiday seems even more miles away with the heavy garden works of late. All I’ll say on that, for now, is that I might have something to share for the Wild About Gardens Week 25-31 October. Can you guess what it might be? You'd like a clue? My back aches and I've been working in my garden with wellies on ;-)

Tuesday, 22 October 2013

Dear wildlife watching friends, as you well know, holidays can afford new sightings and opportunities. Dunvegan Castle, on the Isle of Skye, wasn’t a completely new holiday visit for us having been there many years ago (bc). However, on our visit in September 2013, the opportunity to get close-up views of a colony of common seals on the small islands of Dunvegan Loch definitely was!

The reasonably priced seal boat tickets (£6 with a valid castle or garden entry ticket in 2013) seemed too good an opportunity miss out on. We were all very keen. There was one big problem though – me! How big was the boat?

We would assess our seal boat trip after out visit inside the castle where the MacLeod Chiefs have been living for nearly 800 years. At present Dunvegan Castle is the family home of the 30th Chief, Hugh MacLeod of Macleod (link to images). Dunvegan is in fact the oldest continuously inhabited castle in Scotland. I do love visiting castles that are occupied by a family - don't you?

The front view of Dunvegan Castle, on a dull wet day, is perhaps not its prettiest but as you walk over the bridge and through its entrance you absolutely feel its ancient roots. It most definitely has a historical romance about it.

Walking from room to room (no photography allowed) I have to admit to being drawn to the windows overlooking the loch to see if I could spot the size of the seal boat. Anticipation was building.

The Castle guide in the room with the 'Fairy Flag’ did well in distracting us with the legends (great independent blog post) behind this very old and delicate piece of fabric. This flag is the most treasured possession of the MacLeod Clan.

Meanwhile, outside, the square walled garden (which is typical of Scottish Castles) was looking pretty colourful on our late September visit. I liked the informal planting around the formal pool in the centre.

Walking down to the jetty for the seal boat trip brought a pretty special view of Dunvegan Castle with the Loch below it. This is where a dull wet day, with mist skirting the water, creates the romance and hardship of an ancient Castle perfectly. You can see the small islands in the distance. This was my favourite view.

Disappointingly, after seeing the size of the boat (seating just seven people – one at the very front, and two rows of three people behind with the skipper guide standing at the back) I missed out on seeing wonderful close-up views of the very relaxed seals.

I don’t have sea legs (my legs and arms physically shake) since being on a ferry crossing whilst pregnant with my second daughter. Fortunately for her, that wasn’t passed on and she boarded the small boat with her Dad. I was both delighted and worried for them as the boat sailed off gently across the loch.

Walking up to the picnic table view above the jetty, where other visitors were, I could follow the progress of the small boat across the water. Ha-ha the mist in the distance helped my shaking zoomed in photo ;-)

Meanwhile, back on land, I was getting entertained with brilliant close-up views of a new bird (for me) that we were seeing regularly around the landscape of Skye. The Hooded crows at Dunvegan knew exactly what could be found at picnic tables! Images of them next time :-)

Thanks to the technology of mobile phones, my husband sent me an image from the boat. I enjoyed a live view of the seals just like everyone on board. That was a nice surprise to be part of their trip. What great views they got.

The iPhone 4s video capture below also helped me feel part of the trip - although I did give a sigh that I wasn’t brave enough to go myself. I'm delighted to be able to share this video footage of the seals as seen from a boat trip on Dunvegan Loch (thanks OH xx).

A couple of days later we found ourselves on a road that overlooked Loch Dunvegan on our right. Spotting a parking space on this single track road I took the opportunity to stop and walk across to the edge where I was delighted to get my own views of the common seals at Dunvegan – albeit in the distance and with binoculars.

Zooming out to a longer view you can get a better feel for this rugged landscape with the pretty little white painted houses that could be seen in clusters on hillsides and shores throughout the landscapes of Skye.

We were very lucky with the weather on the rest of our holiday where we found breathtakingly beautiful landscapes as we travelled around the island by car - especially along the west coast towards the Inner Hebridean Island of Raasay and across the Sound of Raasay (link to images). What a stunning island this can be with both mist and sunshine.

OSPREY WEBCAM Loch of Lowes

GARDEN VISITS, WALK WITH ME...

GARDEN BIRD VIDEOS, COME SEE WHO CATCHES MY EYE...

I’ve noticed Sparrowhawks appear in the garden during wind and rain. To see my more regular visitors they are hiding behind the handsome chap above – just click on his photo :-)

BLUE TIT NESTBOX DIARY 2010

Six eggs, two attentive parents, hundreds of caterpillars, insects & live mealworms. Result… six chicks successfully fledge! Click on photo link above to follow their story through chat, photos & video.

WHERE IN THE WORLD AM I?

My small garden is in Perthshire, Scotland. I don’t have salmon in my pond, red deer in my borders, ospreys nesting in my acers or red squirrels at my peanut feeders! Nor do I have the world’s highest hedge, paths exciting enough for the serious cyclist and enough of a lawn for golf! However, Perthshire does plus many beautiful gardens too… follow the photo link above to see :-) Update Nov 2016 - Fantastic news, red squirrels now visiting feeders!